The South Beach Diet

Ok so I finally got my boyfriend to do SBD.  He's lost a total of 15 lbs so far and is on Phase 2 part 3.  And I asked him last night if he's getting in his daily 4 1/2 cups/servings of veggies everday? And he says he does sometimes, but not always.   So he asked a very good question that I didn't know how to respond to.  Why do we have to have a minimum of 4 1/2 cups of veggies a day?  What is the reason/concept behind it?

Vegetables are a very important part of South Beach.  It's also a basic part of the food pyramid in general.  They are full of fiber and other nutrients.  Here's the "South Beach 101" link which gives a little history behind the plan so that you can see how everything fits in. 

http://messageboards.ivillage.com/n/mb/message.asp?webtag=iv-fbsouthbeach&msg=22275.1&x=y

South Beach was originally designed by Dr. Agatston for cardiac patients.  Such positive results were seen that evolved into a more mainstream way of eating for lots of people.  Vegetables are a staple in any healthy eating program. 

To me, what comes out of the ground is the best for us. That is veggies, fruit and whole grains. more veggies: needed if you don't eat organic, changes in soil where many nutrients are lost etc. So many vites and minerals that you can't get elsewhere. Color, we always told the sickest mental healh patients, eat color. No need to get analytical, just eat all the color you can. What has color??????????? veggies and fruit. I know some people who only have catsup for color.

Leila